The National Mall in Washington, District of Columbia — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

What is this?

By Devry Becker Jones, November 20, 2017

1. What is this? Marker

Inscription. What is this?

Known as a snag, this tree's rotting trunk and branches serve as a space for nests, nurseries, storage, foraging, roosting, and perching for birds, small mammals, and other urban wildlife.

Why did this tree die?This lacebark pine (Pinus bungeana) suffered from a girdling root that grew around its trunk and cut off the tree's circulatory system.

Who will live here?Birds like woodpeckers are early residents of snags.Woodpeckers excavate several holes for their nests each year and rarely reuse them. This leaves space for other birds, such as bluebirds, nuthatches, house wrens, and chickadees, as well as squirrels who cannot create their own holes.

How are snags made?Snags occur in trees that die from disease, lightning, damage, or simply old age.Large conifers like this tree make great snags because their hard wood rots more slowly. A snag at least one foot (30.5 cm) in diameter and over 15 feet (4.5 m) tall an serve as hunting perches for hawks, bald eagles, and owls.

Erected by Smithsonian Institution.

Location. 38° 53.441′ N, 77° 1.457′ W. Marker is in The National

By Devry Becker Jones, November 20, 2017

2. What is this? Marker

Mall, District of Columbia, in Washington. Marker is on Madison Drive NW 0.1 miles west of 7th Street NW. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Washington DC 20004, United States of America.

Credits. This page was last revised on February 15, 2018. This page originally submitted on November 20, 2017, by Devry Becker Jones of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 33 times since then and 8 times this year. Last updated on February 11, 2018, by Devry Becker Jones of Silver Spring, Maryland. Photos:1, 2. submitted on November 20, 2017, by Devry Becker Jones of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.